Byculla Zoo and Taraporewala Aquarium: Meeting Mumbai's Animals with Kids

Two of Mumbai’s oldest animal attractions sit barely half an hour apart, and for decades a Byculla Zoo morning followed by an afternoon at the Taraporewala Aquarium was the classic city day out with children. That plan has changed. The zoo is thriving — its Humboldt penguins are still the single biggest draw for small visitors anywhere in the city — while the aquarium at Marine Drive is shut for a complete rebuild. Here is how to do the animals well with kids right now, honestly, and what to expect when the new aquarium finally opens.

Byculla Zoo: an old garden with a penguin colony

Everyone says Byculla Zoo, and older Mumbaikars still call it Rani Baug, but the full name is Veermata Jijabai Bhonsle Udyan. The grounds opened in 1861 as the Victoria Gardens, which makes this one of the oldest botanical gardens in the country. Even before you reach a single animal, the tree canopy — enormous rain trees, a baobab or two, old flowering giants throwing shade over wide walking paths — is a genuine relief on a hot day, and stroller-friendly in a way little else in central Mumbai is.

Veermata Jijabai Bhonsle Udyan (Byculla East)

This sits in Byculla East, a short, signposted walk from Byculla station on the Central line, and close enough to the Eastern Freeway that a cab from South Mumbai is quick. Entry is genuinely cheap: roughly Rs 50 for an adult and Rs 25 for a child, with a family-of-four ticket at around Rs 100, so a full outing for two parents and two children costs less than a round of ice creams. The zoo is open from about 9 am to 6 pm and is closed every Wednesday — commit that to memory, because it is the single most common way families waste a trip here. Tickets can be bought at the gate, and the BMC now also offers online booking, which is worth doing on weekends and school holidays when the queue at the counter builds up.

Beyond the star penguins, the collection your children will actually see includes elephants, tigers and leopards, hippos wallowing in their pool, crocodiles, spotted deer, and a good deal of birdlife — peafowl, pelicans, a sarus crane, the odd golden pheasant. It is an old-fashioned zoo rather than a slick safari park, so set expectations accordingly: the pleasure here is a slow, shaded morning among big trees and familiar animals, not a theme-park spectacle.

What the kids will see: the penguins

The Humboldt penguins are why most families come, and they earn it. Eight birds were flown in from the Coex Aquarium in Seoul in 2016, and the glass-fronted, climate-controlled enclosure opened to the public the following year. The colony has since bred steadily — it now stands at around twenty birds after three chicks named Noddy, Tom and Pingu hatched in March 2025 — so there is a decent chance of spotting a fluffy juvenile alongside the sleek adults.

The enclosure is indoors and kept cold to mimic the Peruvian coast, which means it doubles as a blissful escape from Mumbai heat. You watch through thick glass as the penguins porpoise through the water and waddle about on the rocks; there is no extra charge, the penguins are included in your zoo ticket. A few practical notes that make it calmer for everyone: the penguin hall gets crowded and there can be a short queue to file in, so go straight there on arrival before the mid-morning rush. Ask children not to bang on the glass or use flash — the staff will remind you, but it is nicer to arrive already knowing the rules.

Dr Bhau Daji Lad Museum (Byculla East)

Right by the zoo’s entrance stands one of Mumbai’s loveliest small museums, and it makes the perfect low-key companion to the animals. The Dr Bhau Daji Lad Mumbai City Museum, housed in a jewel-box Victorian building, tells the story of the city through models, maps and old crafts. In its forecourt sits the weathered stone elephant that once stood on Elephanta Island and gave the island its Portuguese name — a real hit with children who have heard of Elephanta but never been. Entry is nominal, around Rs 20 for adults and Rs 10 for children, and it is open roughly 10 am to 5.30 pm. One tidy piece of planning: the museum is also closed on Wednesdays, exactly like the zoo, so the two pair up perfectly on any other day. Half an hour inside is plenty for restless little ones.

The Taraporewala Aquarium: closed for a landmark rebuild

Now the honest part, because it will save you a wasted journey. The Taraporewala Aquarium is not currently open. India’s oldest aquarium, opened in 1951 and inaugurated by the country’s first president, was declared structurally unsafe after a survey in 2022 and has been shut ever since. Its fish were moved out to other institutions, and the old building on Marine Drive is being replaced rather than patched up.

Taraporewala Aquarium (Marine Drive, near Charni Road)

The site sits on Marine Drive near Charni Road station, and there is a great deal to look forward to — just not yet. The Maharashtra fisheries department has approved a roughly Rs 296-crore redevelopment into a six-storey, world-class facility, with a headline main tank holding some 3.5 million litres, a walk-through tunnel where the water arches overhead, marine education zones and a rooftop café. On paper it should become one of the better aquariums in Asia and exactly the sort of place children remember for years. The catch is that, as of now, no firm reopening date has been announced, and construction on a project of this scale runs in years, not months. My advice: treat the new aquarium as something to anticipate, and check for an official opening announcement before you build a day around it. Do not simply turn up at Marine Drive expecting to walk in.

An aquatic fix while the aquarium is shut

Nehru Science Centre (Worli)

If the reason you wanted the aquarium was curious, hands-on children, the Nehru Science Centre in Worli is the obvious substitute and, in some ways, a better one. It is India’s largest interactive science centre, with a big outdoor science park of things to push, pull and clamber on, indoor galleries and a 3D show. Entry is modest — around Rs 100 a head, with the 3D show a little extra — and, crucially for planning, it stays open almost every day of the year, closing only for Diwali and Holi. That makes it a reliable Wednesday option when the zoo and the Byculla museum are both shut. Allow half a day; children rarely want to leave the science park quickly.

Planning a smooth day with children

Go early. Both the zoo and the science centre are at their best soon after opening, before the heat and the crowds. Avoid Wednesday for anything in Byculla, since the zoo and the museum both close that day. Carry water, sunhats and a few snacks — there are stalls, but a long garden walk with small legs goes better with your own supplies. Weekends and school holidays are busy, so book zoo tickets online if you can and head for the penguins first. And keep expectations age-appropriate: this is an unhurried, affordable, shaded outing among trees and animals, not a high-octane park — which, with young children in a hot city, is often exactly what you want.

FAQ

Is the Taraporewala Aquarium open right now? No. The 1951 building was declared unsafe in 2022 and is being demolished and rebuilt as a large new facility. There is no confirmed reopening date, so check for an official announcement before planning a visit.

How much does Byculla Zoo cost and when is it closed? Roughly Rs 50 per adult and Rs 25 per child, with a family-of-four ticket around Rs 100. It is open about 9 am to 6 pm and closed every Wednesday.

Do the penguins cost extra? No. The Humboldt penguin enclosure is included in the standard zoo ticket. It is indoors and air-conditioned, viewed through glass.

Can we combine the zoo with something nearby? Yes. The Dr Bhau Daji Lad Museum is right at the zoo gate, cheap to enter and quick to see — but note it is also closed on Wednesdays.

What is a good rainy-day or Wednesday alternative? The Nehru Science Centre in Worli is hands-on, child-friendly and open almost every day of the year, closing only for Diwali and Holi.

The bottom line

For now, the animal day out in this part of Mumbai is really a Byculla story: the penguins, the old trees and the little museum next door, done early on any day except Wednesday, for the price of a few coffees. The aquarium that once completed the itinerary is mid-rebuild, and the sensible move is to swap in the Nehru Science Centre and save Marine Drive for when the new tanks — and that tunnel — finally open.